The Vive Gamache Chair!

Gorgeous sunny (summer?) day - temps 20 degrees

This is about 15 degrees above normal. I think much of the east coast is breaking temperature records. Amazing. Daffs beginning to show.

Great news!!! Thanks to you, Armand is still alive and thriving over at the CBC CanLit Hunger Games, where he's pitted against other Canadian literary creations. You can vote for him once a day - and you don't have to be Canadian to do it. When last I looked, he was in third place. Anne of Green Gables was threatening to kill him. That can't be good.

Here's the link - hope it works for you.

http://www.cbc.ca/books/2012/03/the-canlit-hunger-games.html

And, over at the CBC Bookie Award, A TRICK OF THE LIGHT has moved into second place...thanks to you. here's that link again:

http://www.cbc.ca/books/2012/03/the-second-annual-cbc-bookie-awards.html

But, as I mentioned before, all the books are wonderful and each deserves to win...and I think this method of choosing isn't so much a reflection on the quality of the winner as the wonderful readers.

But the big news for today is something else entirely! My Assistant Lise (patent pending), Michael and I have created a chair to be auctioned to raise money for a local cause. There's a space in the village of Sutton (or local village) called the Coeur de Village, Salle Alec et Gerard Pelletier. It's a sort of performance space, but not quite so grand. Modest in size but not in vocation. It's used by community groups to raise money, to put on shows, to show films. It's a crucial gathering spot. But it needs support. So a group of local citizens has come up with a wonderful idea - create chairs and auction them off.

48 local artists have been approached, including us! You can see the photo of our chair, which My Assistant Lise really did, but Michael and i helped. And that's Lise signing it. It's our Vive Gamache chair - and if you go to my website at: www.louisepenny.com you'll find a link to the auction of our chair.

On our auction page you'll also find out how to bid, and also find a link for more information on the Chairs project. You might find a chair you like better. They really are amazing....people are so creative!

The chairs can actually be used too - they won't collapse, I promise. We tested ours. And then signed it. Lise and Michael and me. There will only ever be this one Vive Gamache chair. We hope you'll like it, either for yourself or as a gift for someone who knows the Gamache books.

the auction ends on May 5th. If you bid you might want to check back every now and then, to see if there's a higher bid.

In terms of getting the chair to you, not to worry, the auction committee has agreed to ship it to you free of charge.

Have fun - bid high and often! And enjoy the Vive Gamache chair, knowing you've helped a community very much.